These angels have memorized the Lord’s Prayer, but can they say it?

It may be that there’s something essentially human about prayer. It plays a role in the beliefs and practices of a a diverse group of religions with literally billions of followers around the world. For people who do ground their morality in one of these religious traditions, prayer is often a very important part of their spiritual life.

Prayers can be said by entire congregations or by a single individual, sometimes silently. Prayer can be quick and informal or part of a highly elaborate religious ritual. One purpose of prayer is to ask a higher power to intercede, whether on a person’s own behalf or for someone else (or the whole world, for that matter). But prayer isn’t necessarily about making a request. It can also serve as a way to reinforce religious beliefs; prayer of this sort could be seen as a form of meditation or contemplation.

Among Christians, one nearly universal prayer is the “Lord’s Prayer,” also known as the “Our Father.” Derived from the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, it’s a profession of faith and a request for sustenance, forgiveness of sins, and ultimate salvation.

The brain of a toddler is like a sponge, eagerly absorbing all sorts of information from the world around them. It’s an age when children pick up language and begin building up a vocabulary. As you’ll see in the video posted below, Natalie and Nicole are adorable twins who have already memorized the Lord’s Prayer. Their dad decided to capture this on film, so he got the camera rolling and asked them to recite it. Natalie begins with enthusiasm, but when both girls hear mom coming home, they get a bit distracted. But with some gently encouragement from dad, they get back to the task at hand. Now it’s Nicole who seems more eager, but both girls are getting impatient. Natalie decides to pick up the pace and when Nicole can’t keep up, she just jibber-jabbers her way through!